ETO or Ethylene Oxide is a colorless and flammable gas having a faintly sweet odor. The chemical structure of the compound has a strained ring that makes it participate quite readily in the addition reactions causing the ring (of the structure) to open. The ethylene oxide sterilization or ETO sterilization is primarily used to sterilize the medical & pharmaceutical products. It kills the microorganisms that is accumulated during the production or packaging process. Apart from microorganisms, ETO also kills the spores. It is basically used to sterilize items that are heat or moisture sensitive and is suited for semi-industrial applications.
ETO sterilizer carried out the process in 3 stages, namely- Pre Conditioning, Sterilizer, Degasser. In the pre conditioning stage, the batch is made to stay under an environment of controlled temperature and humidity. For the sterilizer stage, the system requires an accurate temperature control and pressure & vacuum control. The actuators require security interlocks. This stage also include checking for tolerance change, phase changes, etc. In the degasser stage, the products are degassed to remove any remaining particles of ETO. The entire batch is made to dwell under the temperature controlled environment.